If you've ever tried to access public data from a government website, you've probably noticed how difficult it is. It seems like the government should be better at organizing data, and certainly it is their responsibility to make that public data accessible. The problem is that the expensive websites the government builds are rarely usable.
The UK may change that. The UK's Cabinet Office website government website has posted an open call of sorts to data developers. While the details of the project are vague, the site states that there are "over 1000 existing data sets, from 7 departments (brought together in re-useable form for the first time) and community resources".
They are asking developers to offer feedback on their current site design and ideas about how to transform their data into a usable, single point of access for government-held public data. They are interested in any features that should be added or changes that should be made to the site or even any data that should be there but isn't. To participate, developers need only to join the Google Group.
The post states: "From today we are inviting developers to show government how to get the future public data site right - how to find and use public sector information."
I am having trouble envisioning how this kind of crowdsourcing could be bad, but I have no trouble imagining the good that could come from it. The added input may help anticipate broader uses of the data in addition to providing design changes that will make the public data usable. I am excited to see this kind of openness in the site creation process and look forward to seeing whether or not it proves to be successful. All the digitally stored data in the world isn’t going to do us any good if it isn’t usable.
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